Politics

State Auditor Tim Keller Moves To Halt Health Insurance Extraordinary Dividends

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STATE News:
 
SANTA FE ― State Auditor Tim Keller has called on the Office of the Superintendent of Insurance (OSI) to halt the approval of “extraordinary dividend” payments for health insurance companies until issues involving potential underpayments of premium taxes are resolved.
 
For example, despite current concerns about money that may be owed to the State of New Mexico, companies, including Presbyterian and Lovelace, have had approved dividends of more than $100 million. The Office of the State Auditor (OSA) is conducting an ongoing audit to get to
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Refund Alert: AG Balderas Announces Hundreds Of NM Students To Receive Refund Checks From DeVry Univ.

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Attorney General Hector Balderas
 
AG News:
 
ALBBUQUERQUE ― Attorney General Hector Balderas announced that hundreds of New Mexico students will receive refund checks from DeVry University as part of a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) settlement over deceptive statements made by DeVry about their job prospects and earning potential after graduation.
 
July 5, the FTC began mailing 173,000 refund checks worth more than $49 million to some students who attended the school between 2008 and 2015. The checks will expire 60 days after they are mailed so it is important for former
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Young Democrats Of New Mexico Elect Leadership

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Tarin Nix of Los Alamos elected to national committee position. Courtesy photo
 
NMDP News:
 
MESILLA ― At the Young Democrats of New Mexico Summer Convention in Mesilla last week, Las Cruces native Zack Quintero was re-elected as the Young Democrats of New Mexico Chair. Also elected today was Karina Martin, New Mexico State University (NMSU) student, as Vice Chair; Scott Goodman, Los Ranchos resident, as Treasurer; and Emerson Morrow, NMSU student as statewide President of the College Democrats. 
 
After being
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Luján Amendment To Protect Those Exposed To Radiation Passes House

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U.S. Rep. Ben Ray Luján
 
U.S. CONGRESSIONAL News:
 
WASHINGTON, D.C. ― An amendment authored by U.S. Rep. Ben Ray Luján (D-NM) to care for those exposed to radiation was unanimously approved by the U.S. House of Representatives late last night.
 
The amendment expresses the sense of Congress that it is appropriate for the U.S. government to compensate all miners, workers, downwinders, and others suffering from the effects of uranium mining and nuclear testing carried out during the Cold War.
 
“Many Americans sacrificed a great deal to ensure our national
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Nobel Peace Laureate Liu Xiaobo Has Died

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Chinese writer Liu Xiaobo, a 2010 Nobel peace laureate and 2004 RSF press freedom laureate, died Wednesday … he had been imprisoned in China since 2008. Courtesy photo
 
RSF News:
 
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is deeply saddened by the news of the death of Chinese writer Liu Xiaobo, who was the 2010 Nobel peace laureate and 2004 RSF press freedom laureate. RSF holds the Chinese authorities responsible and urges them to end the house arrest of his wife, Liu Xia.

The embodiment of resistance to oppression and the

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Udall: We Must Make Cultural, Political And Economic Sovereignty A Reality For All American Indian And Alaska Native Tribes

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U.S. SENATE News:
 
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Tom Udall, vice chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs gave the keynote address at “Indian Nations Rising: Celebrating Native Youth,” an event hosted Wednesday by The Harvard Project on American Indian Economic Development.
 
In his remarks, Udall said cultural, political, and economic sovereignty can be achieved through economic empowerment, strengthening ties to cultural identity, improved health care, and respect for the government-to-government relationship with Tribes.
 
Udall
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Representative Asked To Leave Closed Door Meeting On Aamodt Water Settlement And Rights-of-way Issues

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Courtesy photo

 

Staff Report
Valley Daily Post

NAMBE – New Mexico State Rep. Carl Trujillo (D-Santa Fe County) and residents of northern Santa Fe County, were asked to leave a Thursday meeting organized by the federal Department of the Interior to discuss the controversial Aamodt water settlement and the rights-of-way issues that affect the residents of the area.

Rep. Carl Trujillo

When asked by Rep. Trujillo why they must leave the meeting, the expelled residents were told, “they had not been invited”.

“Their exclusion is odd, given the discussion centered around the Aamodt settlement Read More

Heinrich Representative Speaks To Rotary Club

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thDr. Ken Lucero, a field representative for U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich’s Office, speaks to the Rotary Club of Los Alamos about Heinrich’s Safeguard Tribal Objects of Patrimony 2017 during the club’s meeting Tuesday at the Los Alamos Golf Course Clubhouse. Photo by Kirsten Laskey/ladailypost.com 

 

​​By KIRSTEN LASKEY
​Los Alamos Daily Post 
 
​In 1970s, a shield deeply sacred to the Acoma Pueblo was stolen. That shield recently re-appeared in a French auction house. This is one of many incidents of cultural and sacred Native American objects coming
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Secretary Of State Announces Extension Of Public Comment Period For Proposed Campaign Finance Rule

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New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver

STATE News:

SANTA FE – New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver has announced that she will extend the public comment period on her proposed campaign finance rule, which is intended to provide much needed guidance regarding New Mexico’s Campaign Reporting Act (CRA).

The new deadline is 5 p.m. Wednesday, July 19 to submit written comments by mail, email or fax.

“With the public hearings upon us, I want to give New Mexicans as much time as possible to provide official comment on this proposed rule,” Toulouse Oliver said. “I encourage Read More

Heinrich Introduces Bipartisan Bill To Provide Fourth Graders Free Access To National Parks

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U.S. SENATE News:
 
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), co-chair of the bipartisan Senate Outdoor Recreation Caucus, and U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) has introduced the Every Kid Outdoors (EKO) Act, bipartisan legislation to provide America’s fourth graders and their families free entrance to all federally managed land, waters, and historic sites, including national parks – more than 2,000 sites in all. 
 
The Every Kid Outdoors Act is aimed at encouraging kids to get outdoors and experience America’s public spaces, while
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